Why We’re Here

I Live Here, I Give Here’s mission is to deepen and expand the culture of personal philanthropy by inspiring Central Texans to invest more money in our community. We educate and connect individuals and non-profits so more Central Texans experience the personal benefit of increased philanthropy.

I Live Here, I Give Here’s mission is to deepen and expand the culture of personal philanthropy by inspiring Central Texans to invest more money in our community. We educate and connect individuals and non-profits so more Central Texans experience the personal benefit of increased philanthropy.

Did you know that according to a study done by The Chronicle of Philanthropy in 2012, Austin is ranked 32nd out of the 50 largest cities in the nation in per capita charitable giving? This is a big improvement over our ranking at the beginning of the 21st century when we ranked 48, but there is still a lot of room for growth!

Austin is a vibrant city with a personality all its own. Central Texans are passionate, driven, and generous volunteers of their time and talent. But that’s not enough. The biggest problem facing Austin Nonprofits is there is not enough money.

Our community is well known for cherishing its environment and local businesses, its time to nurture our home-grown nonprofits in the same way!

We depend on our nonprofits to meet so many of the Austin's most basic needs; but the shortage of funds for these organizations is creating large gaps in services.

This is where I Live Here, I Give Here steps in. Our main purpose is to connect people like YOU with the issues you care about and the Nonprofits that support them.

I Live Here, I Give Here is proud of the work we have accomplished since our launch in 2007. We connect the people of Austin with the causes they care about.

We partner with nonprofit groups so they can be more accessible to you. We spotlight specific needs in Austin every month to let you know how you can help.

Austin, we made it to March. We’re only 18 days from raising $4 million for more than 400 nonprofits.

We’ll soon be in a giving frenzy. So before we get lost in the final planning of Amplify Austin 2014, we need to step back and thank the people who have already jumped on board to get Amplify Austin started on a strong and positive note: Our Sponsors.

Thank you to the brilliant individuals and businesses that made the decision to lift up Central Texas nonprofits and social causes through Amplify Austin.

We heard somewhere that, “Strong People Don’t Put Others Down, They Lift Them Up.” That’s what you have done.

On behalfof all the people and nonprofits that will benefit from what you helped create, thank you. And from all of us who are part of Amplify Austin, thank you.

You can also check out our wonderful sponsors on our Amplify PRIZES page!

There are so many ways to explain how we feel right now – excited, determined, anxious, maybe a little sleep-deprived … but always elated to get to 6 p.m. March 20.

And being in good company only helps keep our excitement up! More than four hundred nonprofits are participating this year, and we’ve seen the outreach they’ve been making to their circles and the greater community. We are amazed by your energy and drive to make this a successful giving day.

Plus, our media partners have gotten the buzz out about Amplify Austin too – you’ve probably heard it on the radio, broadcast news, and stories in publications. Yes, Amplify Austin is infiltrating … and we love it!

Now, we’re getting the word out, nonprofits are getting the word out, and media is getting the word out – so how about you?

Believe it. You are so important to raising awareness about Amplify Austin.

Courtney Clark, the founder of our very own Austin Involved, is excited to announce the publication of her book, “The Giving Prescription: A Personal Plan for Healing Through Helping”. For the past two years, Courtney – a cancer survivor and brain aneurysm survivor - has been researching the role philanthropy and giving back play in healing from traumatic life experiences. The information she uncovered in her research led her to created a model for trauma survivors to use helping as a tool in their own healing.

Courtney also discovered how nonprofit organizations can use this research as a tool to turn their clients into future volunteers, donors, and staff members. No organization wants their clients to walk away and never look back. So Courtney is giving a FREE copy of her book away for each Austin nonprofit that sends an attendee to her launch party on February 19th. To RSVP to the party and receive your free copy of “The Giving Prescription,” email Courtney@CourtneyLClark.com.

2014 has brought us a wonderful partnership with the Austin American-Statesman. Starting this past January, the Statesman is publishing monthly articles by Tom Spencer, our Executive Director, that focus on community needs, local nonprofits, and more.

Thanks to the Statesman for supporting our cause for philanthropy!

By Tom Spencer / Published January 26, 2014 in the Austin American-Statesman

Those of us who love Austin puff up a bit when our region lands on yet another top ten list. You’ll find us listed among the most “business friendly”, “fast growing”, “green”, “creative”, and of course, “rocking” cities in the nation.

However, we recently ranked number one in a category that is genuinely shocking: According to the authors of Confronting Suburban Poverty in America, Austin’s suburban poverty grew at a faster rate than any of the nation’s large metros, increasing by 142% from 2000 - 2012.This is one top ten list that we don’t want to be on!I raise this bad news not to burst bubbles, but to point out a widening gap that most of us simply don’t see. Poverty in Central Texas is largely a hidden phenomenon. The poor are being pushed out from central Austin into the suburbs and rural areas where they remain largely invisible.There is one group that is acutely aware of this problem: our nonprofit service providers. Nonprofits are the ones who are stepping up to help those who might otherwise fall through the cracks.No other advanced nation depends on the nonprofit sector as much as the United States. As a result, our nonprofits face enormous challenges. However, the good news is that there is incredible passion and creativity in our nonprofit community. I suspect that Austin may soon be on top ten lists for social entrepreneurship and nonprofit sector impact.At I Live Here, I Give Here we try to foster both pride in our hometown and awareness of its needs. We believe in the tremendous power that is unleashed when individual donors and volunteers connect their personal passions with the great work being performed by local nonprofits.You have a critical role to play! When we give together, we all grow stronger!

In just a week's time we reveal the new Amplify Austin website. 350 plus local nonprofits have established a home on the Amplify Austin website, and counting. We really wanted to make this the go-to site for people looking to donate and connect with local causes and organizations. I guess you could think of the website as the "nonprofitpedia" of Central Texas. Only with an Austin twist.

And our team really wanted to make Amplify Austin easy, accessible and fun. So when you head to www.AmplifyATX.org February 1, here are some of the cool and useful features you’ll see:

Live countdown to Amplify Austin 2014

Convenient nonprofit and category search bars

A pre-schedule your gift button

Videos giving you the rundown of Amplify Austin

An expanded social media platform you can participate in (#AmplifyATX)

Options to create a donor account

Sponsor recognition and news feeds

What’s really exciting is that the giving site will be 365. That' right, Amplify Austin is a resource for you all year long.

But Amplify Austin Day is coming up March 20-21. It's Central Texas' one day to rally the community to give online for 24 hours to their causes of choice. It offers amazing incentive prizes for nonprofits and sponsor dollar matches – so yes, we are really amplifying every dollar donated. Last year the community wave of giving raised $2.8 million. This year, our goal is $4 million.